


Hi Hello

by funkylilwriter



Series: Summer of 2018 [8]
Category: Day6 (Band)
Genre: Gen, Music video inspired, hi hello au, it's literally just the plot of hi hello expanded a bit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-09
Updated: 2018-08-09
Packaged: 2019-06-24 14:13:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15632310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/funkylilwriter/pseuds/funkylilwriter
Summary: When it was time to leave, they didn’t find it hard to do so. Sungjin didn’t feel anything while the twin houses grew distant, both of their families standing by them, waving them goodbye. Sungjin didn’t feel the pain in his chest or the heaviness of his departure – none of the feelings people describe about leaving home.Sungjin felt exactly like he had felt when he’d first seen the pickup truck. He felt just like he had felt when Dowoon had hugged him. That was the only thing he felt.





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

  * For [beesprout](https://archiveofourown.org/users/beesprout/gifts).



> IT'S 00:21 HERE SO HAPPY ANNIVERSARY LOVE HERE IS _THE FIC_ THAT PUT US TOGETHER!! THE REASON I MESSAGED YOU IN THE FIRST PLACE AND I AM SO!! HAPPY!! THAT I HAD!! I LOVE YOU OMG

There is no better feeling than the realization that you have made your dream come true.

For Dowoon and Sungjin, that moment was when they stood in front of their red Dodge pickup truck.

Sungjin felt like he’d burst. He held his breath and let Dowoon squeeze his hand to keep him on the ground.

He remembered when the dream was born; years ago in the school library. The two of them, hunched over an atlas, making a list of all the places they wanted to visit together.

Dowoon had taken out a toy pickup truck and placed it on the map. “We’ll see the world in one of these.” It sounded amazing. They couldn’t wait to grow up, to make their dream reality.

A couple of years later they had realized that their plan, or better yet dream, had been very flawed. They had known that they wouldn’t be able to make it; they knew they’d never be able to fund the trip and their list had been far too long. They had started to lose hope.

Dowoon and Sungjin had been lucky enough to have parents who wouldn’t let them give up. They were the ones who had said “But why not?”

Together, Dowoon and Sungjin had learned that dreams can become reality, but for it to be so they had to be slightly bent to fit the forms of reality. They had started working to achieve their dream in any way they could. They had both found part time jobs and on the weekends they used to put on small street performances in the main street of their hometown. When he was old enough, Sungjin had gotten a driver’s license and they were nearly there.

It had taken them a couple of years. With their parents help and support, they made it.

And when they did, it took them a few moments to realize that it was happening. They were really going to do it.

“Sungjin,” Dowoon said, sounding overwhelmed.

He turned to face the other and in the next moment, he jumped up. He almost knocked Sungjin over, wrapping his legs around his waist, but they were both laughing.

“We did it,” Dowoon was saying.

“We did it,” Sungjin echoed.

When it was time to leave, they didn’t find it hard to do so. Sungjin didn’t feel anything while the twin houses grew distant, both of their families standing by them, waving them goodbye. Sungjin didn’t feel the pain in his chest or the heaviness of his departure – none of the feelings people describe about leaving home.

Sungjin felt exactly like he had felt when he’d first seen the pickup truck. He felt just like he had felt when Dowoon had hugged him. That was the only thing he felt.

Sungjin was at the wheel and Dowoon was in the back with their stuff. They played annoyingly loud music and sang at the top of their lungs. Dowoon waved at passing cars. Some of them, he flipped off for no reason. Sungjin drove above the speed limit and Dowoon cheered him on. At one point Dowoon stood up, spread his arms and closed his eyes. After a while he collapsed with a big smile on his face, his hair a tangled mess and eyes still closed.

Three CDs later, and of course after being whipped by the wind, Dowoon calmed down and even fell asleep in the back. Sungjin turned the music down and for a change drove responsibly. But a smile never left his face.

At the time the road was empty. The sun was high on the sky and everything seemed calm. Being as hot as it was, it was no wonder that no one wanted to be out on the highway.

Then Sungjin saw someone in the distance.


	2. II

He hadn’t exactly thought it through.

It was ironic, really; Jaehyung had been planning to leave for so long and then when the time came, he wasn’t ready.

That didn’t stop him. He’d done it partly out of spite – his mother had never believed that he would truly leave. He used to talk about it a lot and she used to say that that was his way of coping with being the eldest sibling; the one who had to grow up too quickly and the one with the most responsibilities.

In fact she hadn’t taken him seriously even as he was walking out the door. She thought that he’d come back in a while. Truth to be told, he wasn’t equipped for a longer trip. He had his guitar, anything that would fit in the case including all the money he’d saved up, and that was it.

Jae travelled on foot, because he could only afford that. He followed the road, having one destination in mind: Seoul.

He had a solid plan considering what he wanted to do there: get an education. Better than the one he could get in his hometown, anyway.

But he’d kind of glossed over some details like how he’d get there at all.

Despite all of that he wasn’t even thinking about going back. He couldn’t.

By nightfall he’d reached a small town. He found a payphone and called home. He wasn’t homesick, not after a single day. But he’d promised his little sister he’d call to say goodnight. She was used to it and couldn’t sleep without it.

“Jae!”

The enthusiastic greeting made him smile. “Hey, Hyunnie. I’m sorry I couldn’t call earlier. Is it past your bedtime?”

“Just a little. But I had to wait for the call. You know where you’ll sleep tonight?”

Jae threw a glance at the nearby park bench. “Yup, all set.”

“Good then,” Sohyun sounded satisfied. He wasn’t about to make her worry. “Goodnight, oppa.”

“Goodnight, Hyunnie,” he said and hung up.

As he settled down on the bench he started to wonder if maybe, just maybe, he’d also needed the call to be able to sleep.

Jae was rather used to sleeping in strange places; on the floor, on two chairs pushed together, under the stairs, or on the roof. Not because he didn’t have a place to sleep, but because he often used to find himself in odd situations. Because of that, sleeping on a bench was no problem.

He woke up some time after dawn and made a quick getaway from a cop. Then it was walking time again. He followed the road until the sun was high in the sky.

He started to feel tired and a lightheaded, so he decided to do the inadvisable thing and try to catch a ride. His problem was that there were no cars in sight, so he just kept walking helplessly.

Soon he heard something. He stopped in his tracks and turned. A red pickup truck had appeared in the distance and Jae decided to try his luck with it.

At first he thought it would drive by, but it stopped a few meters away. As soon as it did, Jae ran as if he was no longer exhausted. When he reached it, he was met with a friendly smile from a black haired guy behind the wheel.

“Hi,” the guy said.

“Hello,” Jae answered.

“Need a ride?”

He shrugged. “That seems to be the case.”

“We’re going to Seoul. That okay?”

Jae opened my arms. “That’s perfect. I can hang in the back?”

“Sure. Just don’t step on Dowoon.” The guy grinned. “I’m Sungjin, by the way.”

He gave a nod. “Jae.”

After tossing his guitar in the back and climbing in, he saw what Sungjin meant.

Dowoon was the one sprawled out comfortably, hands behind his head, snoozing with his hat over his eyes.

Jae considered telling him to move, as he was taking up most of the space, but that meant that he would have to wake the boy up.

Conveniently enough, he started to wake up soon after Jae got in.

Dowoon lifted his hat slightly and Jae was able to see his face. He squinted up at Jae in the kind of after-nap confusion; and probably the kind of seeing-a-stranger-in-your-pickup-truck confusion.

Jae waved. “Hey.”

“Hi… Who are you?”

“Jae. Your friend decided to pick me up.”

“Oh.” Dowoon rubbed his eyes. “I’m Dowoon.”

“I know.”

Jae received a confused look from him.

“Sungjin told me not to step on you,” he explained.

Dowoon cracked a smile. “Good thing he’s looking out for me.”

“Good thing I didn’t step on you.”

Dowoon laughed, looking to the side. After a while he looked over at Jae’s guitar.

“You play?” He asked.

“Yup,” Jae answered, popping the ‘p’. “You?” He asked, nodding towards the other guitar, which was in the pickup truck before he’d gotten in.

“Nah, that’s Sungjin-hyung’s. I play the drums.” He opened his arms. “Don’t have them here, obviously.”

 “We could form a band,” Jae blurted out.

They both chuckled at the silly idea, but as their laughter faded, they exchanged looks, as if contemplating it.

Jae looked at the road, into the distance. He blinked, thinking at first that he was imagining. But he really did see it – someone sitting at the side of the road.

“Maybe that guy plays an instrument as well so we can be a real group,” Jae said.

Dowoon turned to look at what the other was talking about, turning back to him with raised eyebrows. Dowoon then moved to dangerously lean over the edge to be able to reach the window.

“Another passenger?” He suggested.

Though Jae couldn’t hear the answer, Sungjin must have agreed because the pickup truck started to slow down.


	3. III

He ran.

He ran as fast as he could, driven by a swirl of negative emotions. It didn’t matter that he could barely breathe or that he was choking on his own sobs. He ran down the empty road with no idea where he was going.

He stopped when he was absolutely drained and exhausted, physically and emotionally. Wonpil looked around and realized that he was lost. Not completely lost, he could return easily enough just going back down the road the way he came, but he was in no hurry to return.

Panting, Wonpil walked ahead until he couldn’t walk anymore. He collapsed on the side of the road and sat there, left alone with his thoughts. Every time he thought back to the fight, he started crying again. It took him hours to finally calm down. When he did, he still didn’t move from his spot on the ground. He picked at the grass or threw pebbles across the road.

He felt at peace, which was odd considering everything that had happened. But he was all alone with no one and nothing to bother him for once. He closed his eyes.

He heard the sound of an engine. Wonpil opened his eyes to watch the vehicle approach. He was surprised when the pick up truck slowed down before him.

A blond guy in the back and the one who was driving were smiling in a friendly manner, though Wonpil couldn’t understand why. The third one was comfortably leaned back and he was staring straight at Wonpil. It didn’t make him feel particularly uncomfortable, although the boy seemed to be evaluating him. What for, Wonpil couldn’t guess.

“Hey,” said the blond one.

“Hi,” Wonpil replied.

“Wanna join our band?”

Wonpil tilted his head. “Your… band?”

The one who’d been staring leaned forward and rested his chin on his fist. He was still looking at Wonpil intently, though his gaze had softened. “We don’t have all the details down. We’re not sure which one of us can sing and we don’t have my drums with us. Also I forgot his name already,” he pointed to the blond. “But we’ll get there.”

“I didn’t understand a single thing of what you’ve just said,” Wonpil admitted.

The driver had his arms crossed on the opened window, leaning forward. “That wasn’t a very good explanation, Dowoon just likes to be direct. I’m Sungjin.”

The blond was scribbling something on Dowoon’s arm with a marker. When he was done, he raised Dowoon’s arm to show what was written, holding him by the wrist.

“And I’m Jae,” he said, pointing to his name written on Dowoon’s arm. “Park Jaehyung, but you can call me Jae. Not too hard to remember, right Dowoon?”

Dowoon just shrugged. He glanced at his own arm and without even trying to wipe what Jae had written simply pulled his sleeve down.

“Kim Wonpil, nice to meet you,” he said flatly.

“So, are you in?” Dowoon asked.

“I’m still not sure what we’re doing other than forming a band,” Wonpil said.

“We’re going to Seoul,” Sungjin explained. “We don’t really have a plan on what we’re going to do there. Dowoon and I were supposed to just travel, but—” he shrugged. “—I guess we’ll see how things unwind.”

“Speak for yourself,” Jae complained. “I have a plan.”

“Not a good one,” Dowoon pointed out.

Watching them bicker, Wonpil couldn’t help but let out a quiet chuckle. He took a deep breath and took the time to actually consider their offer. He looked down the road in the direction they came from. He thought about his home – no, not his home, just the place where he lived – and about his brother.

In that moment he felt rage and spite rise in his chest in the form of a wave. They pushed Wonpil up to his feet and before he had the time to think it through he said, “Sure, let’s do it.”

Wonpil got small cheers from the three of them as a response.

Jae helped him into the truck and he settled opposite of him and Dowoon.

“We might have to go back to my place, though,” Wonpil noted, “I literally have nothing with me right now.”

“No problem. Where to?” Sungjin asked, turning around to look at Wonpil properly.

“Turn around and go down the road until you reach a ELEPHANT. I’ll tell you where to from there.”

“Okay then! Hold on,” Sungjin said and they took off.

“So… Any details on what we’re doing?” Wonpil questioned.

Dowoon and Jae exchanged looks.

“Sungjin and I wanted to travel the world,” Dowoon said, not at all sounding like he was joking. “We’re figuring it out. Plans change. His plan has changed significantly,” he said, pointing to Jae as if he still can’t remember his name.

Jae glared at him briefly, then looked back at Wonpil. “I was going to go to school in Seoul, but I didn’t have a real plan on how to do it. Now I’m just tagging along with these two.”

“So, none of us knows what we’re doing?” Wonpil asked, looking between the two of them.

They both shook their heads.

“Good. I thought I was the only one.”

Jae cracked a smile. “Well, at least now we have enough people to form a band. We can figure out the rest along the way.”

Wonpil heard Dowoon calling his name. He glanced over and barely managed to catch the water bottle Dowoon had tossed.

“You look dehydrated,” the younger said.

“Uh, thanks.”

And he really was was. Wonpil had no idea how long he’d been out in the sun before he was picked up. In the moment Wonpil sipped from the bottle, the pickup truck went over a pothole and of course most of the water ended up on his shirt.

Jae and Dowoon burst out laughing. For a second Wonpil was baffled, but after that moment passed he joined in the laughter.

“You can’t even drink water right,” Jae said, doubling over. He was laughing so hysterically Wonpil was afraid his glasses would fall off.

Although he was laughing hard as well, Dowoon wasn’t as hysterical. His cheeks and ears were red, his eyes squinting as he giggled.

Still giggling, Wonpil glanced to the side and noticed Sungjin looking at them in the rearview mirror. He was smiling at their silliness. When he noticed Wonpil looking, he shook his head and focused back on the road.

“So. Our band. We have two guitars. Who plays?” Wonpil questioned.

Jae raised his hand and pointed at Sungjin.

“I play the drums,” Dowoon announced. “Do you play anything? Or sing at least?”

“I play the piano, the keyboard, synthesizer... Anything with keys. And I’m a decent singer I suppose, but I can’t really judge myself.” Wonpil shrugged.

“I can sing,” Jae cut in.

Dowoon looked from Wonpil to Jae then back at Wonpil. “I think Sungjin should be the singer. He’s our safest bet.”

Jae frowned. “What’s that supposed to me—”

“Trust me,” Dowoon said. “If you’re that determined, you can sing backup.”

“I don’t agree with that plan,” Jae said.

“Does everything have to be about you?”

“Hey,” Wonpil interfered, “How about Jae sings for us and Dowoon can decide.”

Dowoon sat up and leaned forward with a smile. “Yeah, sing for us Jae.”

He only huffed, looking to the side. “I don’t have to prove myself to you.”

Dowoon poked his arm. “You’re shy.”

 Jae attempted to swat him away, but Dowoon just kept poking him.

“Sing, Jae. To shut him up,” Wonpil said. He didn’t mean to pick sides, but he really wanted to hear Jae sing.

Jae made a frustrated noise, ruffling his own hair. Looking away from both of them, Jae started to quietly sing.

Even though he clearly wasn’t giving his all, it was enough to shut Dowoon up. And Dowoon wasn’t hiding his admiration in favour of pride. When Jae’s voice faded, indicating that he’s done, the two gave a small applause.

“I stand corrected,” Dowoon said with a smile.

Jae ran his hand through his hair again; it may have been a nervous habit of his. “Thanks. So, am I qualified to be the singer?”

“Maybe we don’t have to have _the_ singer,” Wonpil suggested.

“Maybe. But so far we’ve got Sungjin and this one,” Jae didn’t even bother to complain about his name that time. “We don’t know if you can sing.”

“And what about _you_? Can you sing? And what qualifies you to be the judge?”

Dowoon shook his head. “I’m the drummer. Drummers don’t sing.”

“That’s not a rule,” Wonpil pointed out.

Dowoon raised his arms in surrender. “Fine! We’ll have to sit down and talk it through.”

“Besides, unless we find a keyboard I’ll have to sing since I’ll have nothing else to do.”

Dowoon seemed to be considering it. “You’re right,” he decided.

A silence occurred. The three of us hardly looked at each other until Sungjin spoke up, “Do you think we have room for another member in our little band?”

I could hardly believe it but straight ahead there was someone walking on their own, quite conveniently carrying a guitar.

“I guess today is our lucky day,” Jae said.

“Let’s hope it’s a bassist because that’s the only thing we’re missing,” Wonpil blurted out.


End file.
